Ron's Request
by Elf Knight
Summary: Ronald Weasley has a request to ask of Hermione Granger, one that could either make or break their relationship. Will she say yes? Canon/RonXHermione


**Disclaimer:** I don't own Harry Potter, be it the novels or films. Just thought you should know!

**Author's Note:** This fanfic is canon compliant and takes place several months after _Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows._ I figured there are already a few fics like this, but the idea grabbed a hold of my mind and simply wouldn't let go. It's a short, fluffy one-shot anyways (more like a drabble, I think) so who cares? Well, that about sums it up.

So let the tale begin!

~o0o~o0o~o0o~

"Are you sure she'll say, yes?" Ronald Weasley asked, more like squeaked, as he straightened his tie nervously in front of the mirror.

Sweat beaded his forehead and his hands trembled. This was the day he had been dreading in _weeks_. The topic had come up occasionally, always provoking an awkward and uneasy silence that seemed to be lurking in the shadows for just the occasion.

You see, after the Battle for Hogwarts – the Golden Trio, Ginny Weasley (much to Ron's protest), Neville Longbottom, and Susan Abbot – decided it would be best to live together in the same house. The house in question was the recently discovered Potter Manor that had been lost in the war.

It was a gigantic, but ancient Victorian style building and caked in filth and grime from lack of disuse that would have even made the Dark Lord himself bulk at the thought of cleaning it. Even so, Harry Potter had asked his friends if they could move in with him (just for now, he had said) but of course everyone knew that they would stay there a little longer even though the house was spotless.

Each of the couples had a room to themselves with ten guest bedrooms left over. There was a massive great hall, a plush sitting room, a vast library, a study, and other various chambers. It had taken a while for Ron to get used to the finery (living in the Burrow his whole life) but he wasn't jealous of Harry anymore.

The poor bloke disserved every spot of happiness he could get right now, even if that meant snogging his younger sister every five minutes. Heaving a sigh, Ron turned to the young man in question who was leaning in a very laidback fashion against the wall. Harry took another bite out of his apple and arched an eyebrow appraisingly at his old friend.

Ron's face flushed.

"What if she says no and won't see reason, mate?" Ron asked worriedly. "I mean, she is my life and I would never forgive myself if she hates me forever. We are best friends, true, but then again – which best friends are dating or even living in the same house and bedroom for that matter?"

Harry simply chuckled and shook his head at Ron's nervousness. The Chosen One had seen this coming days ago and knew Ron should have asked her ages back. But being Ron, he didn't realise the damage he would otherwise cause and had put it off until the last minute. Now he had just come back from work and hadn't even bothered to change into a new suit.

"Ron," Harry said softly, trying to calm him down a bit. "You do love her, right?"

"Yes," Ron nodded uneasily.

"Then whatever choice she makes won't affect what you feel for her, right?" Harry queried although it sounded more like a statement than a question.

"Yeah, I guess so," Ron said, squirming a little. "But this is serious, mate. My whole future could be ruined if she says no. I mean, she might hate me for the rest of my life!"

"I don't think it's _that_ drastic," Harry smirked.

Ron just sighed and rolled his eyes.

"You're hopeless!" He muttered.

"I'm not hopeless, I'm Harry!" Harry grinned.

"See what I mean?" Ron pointed out exasperatedly.

Heaving a sigh, Ron squared his shoulders and sucked in a deep breath. Making sure his heart beat at a steady rate and not a hundred miles per hour, he quickly crossed the empty floor space across his bedroom to his cupboard. Upon opening it, he pulled out a tiny and delicate-looking black box he had purchased from the jeweller's store on the way back.

Swallowing hard, he took one last glance at Harry who gave him an encouraging grin and a thumbs-up. Muttering under his breath about no one understanding him, he gave himself a mental shake and trudged out the room and down the hall to the library. After a few minutes, he finally found the one he was looking for sitting cross-legged most daintily in a plush, high-backed armchair surrounded by a pile of books and with one on her lap.

Ron could not resist a grin.

_Typical Hermione!_ He thought dryly as he watched the bushy-haired witch devour the Potter library (which easily surpassed the size of Hogwarts' and the Ministry of Magic's libraries combined).

Taking another deep breath, Ron palmed the small black box and stepped forward. It was either now or never and he had to ask her lest fear her wrath when she found out and he never told her. He would hate himself to hurt her again with his stupidity that so often prevailed against common sense.

_Not this time, mate!_ Harry's laughing voice seemed to quip in the back of his head.

_Oh, well!_ Ron sighed. _Here goes nothing..._

Forcing a smile, Ron cleared his throat emphatically until Hermione finally looked up with annoyed look on her face. Her facial expression quirked into that tight-lipped smile he loved so much upon realising who it was.

"Seriously, Ronald," Hermione said in that adorable, bossy voice. "Don't you know how to knock?"

"Not really," Ron admitted reluctantly.

"Thought so," Hermione chuckled with a smug grin.

"Um, look," Ron muttered. "I have to ask you something, something important. I've been wanting to for days now but only just found the courage to do so. Will you listen?"

"Ron..." Hermione said warningly, her eyes getting 'that look'.

"Please just hear me out!" Ron begged, planting his larger frame down on one knee and holding his little black box before him.

Hermione sighed and her eyes filled with reproach and worry. Ron licked his parch lips and continued.

"I was the one to break the washing machine instead of Neville," Ron gasped out, his voice cracking slightly in fear of her wrath. "I'm sorry. I've been meaning to tell you. It's not fair to that poor bloke to always get in trouble. It's like he took Harry's mantle or something."

A relieved and amused grin spread across Hermione's face and she smirked at his obvious discomfort.

"So what's with the box, then?" She asked curiously, thinking it to be something...else...

"Well," Ron stammered uneasily, hoping she wouldn't kill him when she found out. "I knew you always wanted to get Crookshanks a mate ever since last September, so I went ahead and got one for you."

"You did what?" Hermione asked incredulously.

"Ah, I'm sorry," Ron said weekly. "I thought you would be mad at me for the washing machine thing since your favourite pull over was in there that your mum had given you. I wanted to make it up to you so I got Crookshanks a mate. Well, I wanted to see if they liked each other so I let them get to know each other the moment I got home while you were in the library. I thought it would be a nice surprise if they were all pleasant around each other."

"And," Hermione prompted, dreading the answer.

"Uh, yeah," Ron muttered. "I think they got a little _too_ friendly if you know what I mean."

"Um, no, not really," Hermione said with a shake of her head.

"You know," Ron explained. "Sometime soon we'll be having lots of little Crookshanks running around Potter Manor."

"Oh!" Hermione blushed, her hand flying to her mouth as she stifled a giggle.

"Oh," Ron agreed.

A moment of awkward silence settled on them, during which Ron finally mustered up the courage to ask the real question he was here.

"Anyways," Ron said, handing her the box. "This was meant to be collar for your new cat and I was just hoping if you could forgive me for not telling you about the washing machine."

"Ron," Hermione said gently, with a warm smile on her face.

"Yes?" Ron asked hopefully, not daring too look up.

"I forgive you," Hermione replied.

"Really?" Ron asked not daring to believe it.

To answer that stupid question, Hermione knew only one thing would make the bloke believe her – she silenced him with a kiss.

THE END

**A/N:** Well there you have it! I'm not too sure what these kind of fics are supposed to be called, but it was supposed to be like a joke rather – making you think one thing is going to happen and then surprise you at the end. Normally, I prefer the HarryXHermione fandom since they are my favourite couple but I thought Ron suited this story much better than Harry in this case. I might be able to think up more of these maybe with Harry and Ginny and Neville and Susan (Is that who he ends up with in the end?) but that all depends on how many reviews I get.

So R&R, please...

...And stay tuned!


End file.
